Outtake: The Four-Way Foray
by Count Mallet
Summary: AU crossover. (2013/17 BBY/18 GrS) In this Ahsoka's Legacy outtake, Jedi, Sith, MASK, and VENOM all converge on the annual Border Brawl Vehicle Race. Will an engaged Ahsoka Tano take a break from planning her upcoming wedding and join the mission? Rated Teen for suggestive banter and cartoon violence. Originally posted on Fanfiction·net. [S39-F31-M15-X4]
1. Collaborations

**Preface**

This is a sequel of sorts to _Racing Into Knighthood._ Although one of the reasons I wanted to write this no longer exists, I decided to go ahead and write this to complete the "prequel era" of the _Ahsoka's Legacy_ series. Besides, it might be interesting to see Ahsoka prior to her wedding that takes place roughly two months after this story.

This story takes place in August 2013 AD (17 BBY in the Star Wars Universe).

* * *

**Acknowledgments**

Very special thanks go to The Walt Disney Company – the owners of the Star Wars franchise; and, to Kenner and D.I.C. Enterprises, Inc. – the owners of MASK.

Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

* * *

**List of Abbreviations**

MASK – Mobile Armored Strike Kommand [sic].

PNA – Peaceful Nations Alliance.

VENOM – Vicious Evil Network of Mayhem.

* * *

With the annual Border Brawl fast approaching, the American and Canadian governments asked the Peaceful Nations Alliance to perform background checks on all the racers. Originally, the race course included both the United States and Canada. After 9/11, however, security concerns prompted changes to the race. Now, the annual race took place within a single country with the US and Canada alternating as hosts.

This year's race was hosted on the US side of the border. Canadian officials asked the PNA to forward a list of any potential and known troublemakers that might try to cross the border via the bridge or tunnel that connected Border City and Violet City.

"I take it they already know about VENOM," Duane Kennedy stated. As leader of the PNA, he was in charge of security for the race.

"It's one of the first things I told our contact, that and identifying the MASK agents who are currently scheduled to race," Matt Trakker replied.

"In a pinch, I've been given permission to approve any last-second racers if you choose to ask additional MASK agents to join you."

"I don't think that will be necessary, Duane. I believe we have everyone we need."

"So, are you almost done yet?"

"Almost, I have a few more applications to scan and screen." Matt then took the next application and ran it through his portable scanner. The image of a female popped up as the application information was processed. As Matt examined the online photo, she looked rather nondescript with blonde hair and blue eyes. As the computer finished scanning the application, the display flashed red."

"Matt, what's wrong?" Duane asked.

"It looks like we have something," Matt replied. He then pressed a button on his tablet device and spoke, "Computer, analyze the application and specify reason for flagging."

After a moment, a synthesized female voice announced, "The name 'Kate Ladd' is an alias." The woman's correct personal information displayed on the screen as the voice added, "Other known alias: Darth Stinger, female Sith."

"Matt, isn't that who may have threatened last year's Cactus Canyon Challenge?" Duane asked as he correctly recalled the term "Sith."

"It's very possible. It looks like we may need our allies from last time to help us again – if only I could remember their names."

"I believe one of them was called 'Cara.' I can't remember the other, aside from her having orange skin and funny things on her head."

Matt Tracker typed information into the computer. "Identify available Jedi for this mission," he commanded.

Matt was surprised to see the results. "Believe it or not, Duane, their headquarters aren't that far away from here. Maybe about a half hour away at the most."

"Go ahead and contact them. It sounds like we'll need their help."

* * *

"Oh, master, I need to see you for a minute. I have a caller looking to speak to you," Knight Ashley told her superior.

"Can it wait until tomorrow? I'm about to go see Ahsoka right now," he replied.

"It's an incoming call from the Peaceful Nations Alliance. It sounds rather important."

The Grand Master's eyes widened. "That's the group we helped last year. I wonder what they want. Give me a couple of minutes and I'll take the call."

A moment later, he joined Master Cara and Master Cal in the meeting chamber. As the video display activated, Matt Trakker appeared on the other end.

"It's good to see familiar faces again," Matt said.

"Likewise, I'm sure. But I sense this isn't a friendly social call. How can we help you?" Tim asked.

"Are you familiar with the Border Brawl?"

"I am, actually. It's one of the last events of the summer that fosters friendship between Border City and Violet City, if not the US and Canada in general."

"We're here for the race, but something has come up with the list of racers. I'd like to discuss the matter with you, but discussing it here is too risky, even with a secure channel."

"I agree with you. You're not that far away, so why not come here so we can discuss the matter in person. If you have a communications expert, that person is welcome, too. He or she can meet with mine and we'll see if we can find a way to collaborate."

Matt nodded. "It sounds good to me. We'll be there shortly," he replied. With that, the transmission ended.

"What do you plan to do, master?" Master Cara asked.

"I'm not sure, my former padawan. I'll know more once we meet with our PNA counterparts. For now, I better tell Ahsoka I'll have to miss out on our dinner plans. I hope she understands."

"She might. She's still spending most of her spare time trying to pick out a wedding dress."

"She's **still** stressing out over that? You're her maid of honor. Maybe you can remind her it can be something simple. I don't expect anything too fancy or pricey."

"I know, but she still wants to make a good impression for you."

"I realize that. Just do what you can to help her out. I don't want her stressing out too much."

* * *

Ahsoka was one of the few Jedi to have permanent quarters inside the Jedi Order. At the moment, she sighed. Master Cara was kind enough to give her the current issue of _Today's Wife_, but Ahsoka didn't like any of the dresses she saw after thoroughly reading the magazine from start to finish several times.

Ahsoka felt relieved when she heard her door chime sound. She stood up and went to open the door.

"Hey you," she greeted her fiance.

"Hi. I hate to do this, but, I can't join you for dinner tonight," he told her.

"What's wrong?"

"I have someone coming to meet with me. We may have a new mission coming up."

"What kind of mission?" Ahsoka asked curiously.

"Do you remember the Cactus Canyon Challenge?"

Ahsoka's head-tails twitched as she recalled her unpleasant encounter with Lester Sludge. "I don't think I'll be forgetting that mission any time soon," she answered.

"Well, it looks like your allies from that mission are up here for the Border Brawl race. They might need our help again."

"What do they need? Security? Racers? Or both?"

"I don't know yet. That's what I'm about to go find out."

Ahsoka nodded and an idea came to her. "If they haven't eaten yet, why not take them to the dining hall. You could reintroduce them to me and share the big news with them," she suggested as she pointed her ring finger forward.

"You know, that's not a bad idea. We'll see how things go, okay."

Ahsoka nodded.

"Oh, and try not to stress out too much about things. I know we have less than two months now, but I'm sure everything will work out. I better go get ready to welcome our guests, though. See you soon."

Ahsoka nodded as she shared a parting kiss with her fiance.

* * *

"He'll be right with you," Knight Ashley stated. It was only a short time later that her superior greeted his guests.

"Matt, Duane, it's good to see you again, even if this isn't a social visit."

"Likewise," Matt replied before adding. "This here is Alex Sector, my computer and communications expert. He's served me ever since the inception of MASK."

"And you've already met Knight Ashley. Given that she's my computer whiz and research expert, I guess she's my version of Alex."

"What do you want to do first?" Duane asked.

"I'm not sure how MASK or the PNA operates, of course, but I was thinking Ashley and Alex could discuss what degree of collaboration is needed between our organizations. I'm sure you have your trade secrets; I have mine. Surely, we can still find a way to share the information we'll need to help us address any threats to the race."

"You'd let Ashley discuss this without your input?" Matt questioned.

"I trust her. And if she has any questions or concerns, she can always contact me for clarification. I figure it's the same with Alex."

"He's right Matt. I think I know what to ask and offer them, chap," Alex stated in a noticeable English accent.

"I can't argue with that. Alright, Alex, I'll let Ashley and you see what you can work out. Contact me if you need anything."

* * *

Nearly a half hour later, the meeting between Alex and Ashley ended with both communications experts forging a collaborative agreement between the Jedi, MASK, and the PNA. The two of them caught up with Matt, Duane, and Tim just before they reached the dining hall.

"So, how did it go?" Matt asked.

"We reached what we think is a good agreement. Ashley gave us some useful information on this Darth Stinger person and I gave her some additional information on VENOM. We've agreed to collaborate throughout the race without compromising any of our confidential data to each other," Alex replied.

"It sounds like you did a good job."

"You'd be quite impressed, Matt. They may be the only organization that comes close to the data store we have."

Matt nodded. "Their organization is rather impressive," he admitted before his host spoke next.

"Before we eat, I'd like to reintroduce you to someone. I'm sure you remember my fiancee, Ahsoka."

Matt looked on in surprise. "Fiancee? You didn't tell us you two were engaged."

"It happened after our mission with you." Ahsoka explained. "It's a pleasure to see you again. Is Gloria here by chance?"

"I'm sorry, Ahsoka. Gloria chose to remain with her professional racing circuit. She hasn't been on a mission ever since last year, although she has offered more critique on our vehicle as we've upgraded it."

"Oh."

As the group sat down with their dinner, they discussed the mission.

"So, I trust you'll need security again," Tim stated.

"That and a racer who can stand up to this Sith lady. From what it sounds like, she could cause more havoc than VENOM if she really wanted to."

"You have no idea what she's capable of doing. What do you think, Ahsoka? Would you like to race again?"

"No way! I almost died last time. I'm not putting myself in danger like that again. Besides, I still have a wedding to plan," Ahsoka stated emphatically.

"Alright. That's fine. Maybe Master Cara would like to have a chance." However, she declined when asked by commlink and expressed her desire to handle security again.

"Do you know **anyone** who wants to race?" Matt asked.

"I guess it comes down to me. It can't be too hard, can it?"

"That depends, I guess. But if you're going to be our driver, I better give you a crash course after dessert … no pun intended."

"I appreciate it, Matt. I'd hate to describe my first attempt at racing as a smashing good time."

* * *

Elsewhere, a motley convoy of vehicles closed in on Border City: a Formula 1 race car, a Nissan 300-ZX, a GTO, a touring bike, an ATV, and an oil tanker. Not only was VENOM preparing for the Border Brawl, but Miles Mayhem heard rumors that, if true, held potential profits.

"What are we going to do here, Miles?" Maximus Mayhem asked.

"You should know by now, brother, I always have a scheme in place. There's supposed to be an abandoned auto plant adjacent to the race course. If what I heard is true, there's a car made of solid gold buried far below the foundation. While we race, I plan to have Goon scan for it with Outlaw's computers so that Mad Dog can dig it up for us while Lester makes sure nobody pokes their nose where it doesn't belong," Miles replied.

"So that's it, we race and steal a car?"

"That's not just it, Maxie. You ought to know that by now. One of my informants tipped me off that MASK plans to use the same allies as they did last year. Fortunately, that group's arch rival is in the race. If we can convince her to help us deal with MASK, I'm willing to help her eliminate her enemy."

"Anything that makes it easier for us," Max answered.

* * *

Later that evening, before dusk, Matt and Tim test-drove a McLaren M23 race car around a test track.

"I didn't know you had connections to this facility," Matt stated.

"I'm surprised I still know people that work here, to be honest. But I'm glad they were gracious enough to let us use their circular test track. I've got to say this race car drives quite well. And, the touch screen display is pretty neat."

"It's one of the upgrades we've added since the race in New Mexico. It makes it easier to review data without the distraction of buttons and knobs. We're still not quite ready to deploy Oz-1 as a full-fledged MASK vehicle, but we're getting very close now."

Tim noticed a small lever off to the side and below the gear shift. He curiously reached over to the lever.

"What's this do?" he asked as he pulled it towards him.

"Wait, don't activate that!" Matt called out, but it was too late.

Matt looked over and noticed a surprised look on his colleague's face. Under-body thrusters sent the vehicle airborne as it moved forward. The sides of the race car pulled away until all the wheels were in back of the vehicle and pointed behind it. As additional thrusters in the tires activated, the edges of what were now the wings opened to reveal micro-lasers. The touch screen now changed to show targeting scanners and other information relating to the vehicle's new configuration.

"What did I do?" Tim asked as he found himself flying a race car instead of driving it.

"I was trying to stop you, but I guess you've found our vehicle's attack mode. All our MASK vehicles have an alternate configuration."

"So I've heard. What's this one do?"

"You now have a jet similar to my own vehicle. The main difference is that you have micro-lasers and an overhead laser that shoots out of the oxygen intake above us."

"Impressive. This might come in handy."

"I'd have to discourage you from using jet mode. It's a lot more difficult than driving a race car. And it uses up more fuel."

"Normally, I'd agree with you. But in a dire emergency, I may need this, especially if I end up as somebody's target."

Matt gave a slightly reluctant nod. "I guess you're right. Just remember it's not a toy. But now that you've seen what you can do, we may as well convert back and make sure it's ready for the race."

* * *

The next morning, Tim stopped by the manufacturing wing to talk with the Jedi charge for the day.

"I'm here for my helmet," he stated.

"Ah yes, wait right here," his colleague replied. A moment later he returned with a helmet. In the top part just above the visor, a miniature camera was installed. On the right side of the helmet, an antenna-like projection jutted out.

"We installed the camera as you asked. Once the race starts, you can activate the live feed on our intranet page at 1·8·4·6·invalid/cam·html."

"Very good. What about the other feature?"

"That was a bit tricky, but the guys finally got it to work. The blue button activates it. We haven't tested it yet though, so we were hoping you'd do so outside."

"That sounds reasonable."

The pair walked out to the back parking lot and stood in an adjoining grassy area.

"Go ahead, master, try it out," Tim's colleague stated.

Tim reached over and pressed the button. A small blast that resembled a lightning strike shot out of the helmet's side projection.

"It works, but I need to try something. Pressing buttons and driving don't usually mix." He then used the Force to manipulate the button and take another test shot.

"I'm glad it works. But I'm not sure how many shots you can take before the power drains out. I'd suggest you use it sparingly."

"No worries, I planned to use it only when I have to."

A moment later Ahsoka came out to join her fiance.

"Well, this is it, I'm off to race. Are you sure you don't want to come?" he asked her.

"That's okay. They're going to broadcast it inside for everyone. Good luck, but please be careful. I don't need anything happening to you," Ahsoka replied.

"I'll be fine," he replied as he hugged her. Ahsoka quickly pulled away.

"Umm, Tim, please tell me the camera isn't on yet?"

"It's not, what's wrong?"

Ahsoka's head-tail stripes darkened in embarrassment. "Watch where you point that thing," she told him as she pointed to the camera.

"Oh. Sorry. Thank goodness you don't wear your old outfit anymore."

Ahsoka shook her head. "Just be safe," she finally replied before kissing him good-bye.

* * *

Miles Mayhem stopped Buzzard at the abandoned KADP car plant. With Bruno Sheppard, Lester Sludge, and Nash Gorey driving Stinger, Iguana, and Outlaw respectively, they were set to prepare for their next scheme.

"Mad Dog, I want you to clear out this junk so Gorey can get Outlaw inside and start scanning. That gold auto has to be in there somewhere. Lester, you keep watch to make sure MASK doesn't interfere – or anyone else for that matter."

"Sure thing, boss. If they do, I'll rip them to shreds," Lester replied as he laughed hysterically.

"Hey! Less talk and more work!" Gorey called out.

Bruno walked over to Miles and discreetly said, "I can see to it he never bothers us again. I can even make it look like an accident."

"As tempting as that is, don't do it. We actually need him and his computer skills on this mission. Just do your best to not get annoyed by him. I've got to get going to race. Max and I have someone else to see."

As the Mayhem brothers sped off in Buzzard, Bruno walked back over to Stinger. Before he could enter, though, he head the familiar sound of a gun cocking.

"Alright, give me the keys or you won't live to tell anyone you said 'no'," A voice said from behind him.

Bruno turned around to see one of the local citizens pointing a gun at him. The man seemed unimpressed when Bruno laughed at him from under his mask.

"I'm not playin'!" the man repeated.

"Magna-beam, on," Bruno said in reply. Rays from his mask locked onto the gun and pulled it out of his hands. Bruno then used the magna-beam to rip the gun apart, rendering it unusable. His would-be assailant decided to run away in the opposite direction.

"Like taking candy from a MASK wimp," Bruno said out loud as he laughed. He then got back inside of Stinger and joined Gorey.

"Alright Bruno, help me clean this junk out of the alley. You can use the claw and I'll use my mask. That way, I can set up Outlaw to start the scan," Gorey said.

"Just what I always wanted to do," Bruno muttered.

"What did you say Mad Dog?"

"I said I'll start doing it for you," Bruno replied as he activated Stinger's claw to start moving away the debris.

"Powerhouse, on," Gorey said. An eerie, green glow surrounded his body as his mask made odd chirping sounds. Now, he had superhuman strength. He used it to pick up a large pile of heavy cement and other junk and move it like it was nothing.

* * *

As Darth Stinger removed her racing helmet, she was surprised to see unfamiliar people walking up to her. The fact none of them were Jedi further surprised her. She gave them a very suspicious look when she noticed their masks. Halloween was still over two months away. The person who looked like the group's ringleader stepped out in front to speak to hear.

"Kate? Or should I say Darth Stinger?" Miles Mayhem asked.

"What do you want?" Darth Stinger hissed through gritted teeth.

"Show some respect!" Vanessa Warfield interjected.

Darth Stinger unhooked her lightsaber from her belt, but she never got to ignite it.

"Whip, on" Vanessa called out. A laser-like beam of energy knocked the lightsaber to ground and broke it in half.

Darth Stinger quickly used the Force to grab her crystal. She wasn't expecting anything like this, but she wasn't intimidated.

"That wasn't very smart. Don't mess with me," she replied.

Vanessa than swung her whip to wrap around Darth Stinger's throat. Undaunted, the latter slowly closed her hand. Vanessa found herself coughing and choking for air.

"Let me go, and I'll let you go," Darth Stinger stated.

Once Vanessa deactivated her whip, she struggled as she started to breathe again.

"Very impressive. Now, we have an offer for you," Miles said.

"What could you possibly offer me?" Darth Stinger asked.

"I happen to know that MASK has recruited an enemy of yours to be part of the race. If you help us deal with our enemies, we'll help you eliminate yours."

Darth Stinger's eyes lit up. If the offer was genuine, she was definitely intrigued.

"You'd really help me? I've wanted to take him down for years."

"We'll help you if you help us."

"You've got a deal."

* * *

Elsewhere, the MASK agents and Tim reviewed the race course.

"After a few laps here at Fort Madant, we then leave and make our way to Perimeter Boulevard. That used to be the original border of Border City. Eventually, we'll reach Hog Island. There, there will be more laps to determine the winner."

"It sounds easy enough, _n'est-ce pas?_" [isn't it?] Jacques LaFleur asked. As a native of Quebec, he looked forward to his debut in the Border Brawl.

"Nothing is easy with VENOM, or this Sith Lady in the race. You should know that by now, Trailblazer," Matt replied.

Elsewhere, Boris and Clutch discussed the race.

"So, this is what you call the rubber match," Boris stated.

"How do you figure that?"

"I beat you in Memphis. You beat me in Baja. Today we settle it once and for all."

"Alright, you Siberian Husky."

"And let's make it more interesting. If you win, I'll make you some of my famous borscht."

"You're on, Boris. But what do you want if you win?"

"How about dinner at one of those sports places?"

"I guess that will work. May the best man win."

"Good luck, Clutchsky. You're gonna need it."


	2. The Border Brawl, Part One

With the race starting time approaching, all the drivers made last-minute inspections and adjustments to their vehicles. Near the front of the pack, the MASK drivers, and Tim, did what they could to prepare for the race.

"Where's Nevada?" Jacques asked.

"He's not racing, but he'll provide support. He's outside the fort. Apparently, this was the site of a Native American massacre over 200 years ago. He looked rather uncomfortable when he learned that, so I told him he could wait for us outside the fort," Matt replied.

"_Sacrébleu!_ [My goodness!] I didn't know that, either. I thought this fort was to defend against us Canadians."

Matt chuckled. "See, Trailblazer, you learned something new today."

A few vehicles over, Boris and Clutch had their own discussion about the race.

"Just remember not to slow down for any VENOM pit stops," Clutch said.

"That assumes VENOM bothered to rebuild it," Boris replied with a hearty laugh. "So, what do you think about bet?"

"If I win, you'll give me some of your famous borscht? And if you win, I have to take you to the Wise Bird Bar? It's fine by me."

Meanwhile, Tim activated his helmet camera and contacted the Jedi Order.

"Ashley, are you there?" he asked via commlink.

"I'm right here, master. What do you need?"

"I've turned on my helmet cam. Is it broadcasting on the intranet now?"

After a moment, Ashley replied, "It is, but all you're doing it looking inside your race car."

"That's all I need to know. Go ahead and announce that I'm live. And, if you need to tell me anything related to the race or anything that needs to be relayed to our MASK colleagues, use frequency two for that."

"Will do."

Near the back of the pack, VENOM and Darth Stinger plotted their own strategy.

"Max and I will take care of Trakker in Buzzard. The rest of you can take care of the others."

"There's three of us and five of them," Floyd whined.

"Yeah, but aside from Trakker, nobody else has an air vehicle. You two should have the upper hand."

"I just wanna make em suffer and wipe 'em out."

"You'll get your chance, Bird Man. Just be patient. Once MASK is out of the way, Stinger can eliminate her enemy."

"Why do **I** have to wait?" Darth Stinger hissed in disgust.

"Because, you agreed to help us before we helped you, that's why. Don't forget, we gave you a motorcycle with a hidden blaster like you requested."

"Fine!" Darth Stinger muttered. _I'll take him out the first chance I get, help or not,_ she thought.

* * *

At the abandoned KADP Car plant, Bruno continued to remove junk and debris so Gorey could drive Outlaw closer to its destination.

"Hey, Lester, get over here," he called out.

A moment later, Lester stopped his ATV, Iguana, in front of Bruno.

"This stuff is too big and heavy for me to move in Stinger. Maybe you can cut through it for us," Bruno said.

"My pleasure. I'll shred through it faster than cheese in a salad," Lester replied with a hysterical laugh. At the flip of a switch, a circular saw blade extended from the front of Iguana and started spinning. The shredder blade made short work of the twisted metal and concrete that blocked the roadway.

"Thanks. The sooner we get done, the sooner Gorey will stop bossing us around," Bruno stated.

"I wish I knew what Miles sees in that wimp," Lester replied.

"Take away his computers and he's a bigger buffoon than Dagger ever was."

"Alright you two, get back to work and stop yapping," Gorey called out.

"See what I mean," Bruno said.

* * *

With all the vehicles lined up at the starting line, the drivers eagerly awaited the starting signal. Due to Fort Madant's narrow roadways, the cars were packed in as close as possible without contact.

"Drivers, start your engines," sounded on the overhead speakers.

As the overhead lights turned green, everyone sped away from the starting line. The organizers plotted a meandering course throughout the fort before the drivers entered the city.

The drivers did their best to negotiate the tight turns. Due to the narrow roadways, nobody made any passing attempts; those would wait until drivers left the fort and made their way to Perimeter Boulevard. As the vehicles made the turn, drivers started to jockey for position. Although this portion of the boulevard was two lanes until it passed under a railroad viaduct, having the lead early was a mental advantage if nothing else.

As the lead pack drove under the viaduct, Jacques breathed a sigh of relief.

"That was close. Had I converted Volcano to attack mode, I'd be the headless lumberjack," he said.

"That's a haunting thought," Matt replied as everyone else chuckled.

In the back of the pack, VENOM and Darth Stinger drove under the viaduct.

"Alright, let's thin out the field. Stinger, you do what you can to catch up to your Jedi foe," Miles told the rest of his crew.

Max didn't even respond; instead, he pressed a button inside his pod. One of Buzzard's melter cannons came out from the front of Buzzard and shot a stream of hot, liquefied lead towards the vehicles in front of him. As the liquid contacted the tire of one of the other vehicles, the ensuing blowout took out not only that driver, but two more.

In the other lane, Floyd Malloy did his part to retire a couple of more drivers.

"Buckshot, fire!" he called out. A number of ball bearings shot out from his mask. Some caused another blowout, and the rest caused another vehicle to careen out of control and hit a utility pole.

As VENOM picked off the civilian drivers one by one, Darth Stinger did her best to navigate the wreckage until she reached the race care marked with the number 20. Tim, sensing his adversary's presence, decided to tease her.

"Darth Stinger, we meet again. I hope you drive better than you swing a lightsaber, my dear," he said.

Back at the Jedi Order, Ahsoka, viewing her fiance's helmet feed, looked on in bewilderment.

_Why is he calling her that? He better not plan on calling **me** that,_ she thought.

Back at the race, Darth Stinger groaned. "Joke all you want, Jedi. This time, you're going down. And, I've got help to do it," she promised.

"Surely you don't mean VENOM? They don't care squat about you. They're just going to use you for their own selfish purposes; That's if you're lucky."

"You'd be surprised. And once I finish you off, your friends are next."

"You're right about the surprise. I have one for you," he replied. Reaching out with the Force, he turned his head and activated his helmet's built-in weapon. The sudden blast startled Darth Stinger so much that she screamed and swerved to avoid the shot. She then swerved again to stay on course.

"That's not fair, you're not supposed to be one of them!" she screamed.

"A Sith is lecturing **me** on fair? I guess a certain place has frozen over, and it's only August," Tim replied as he sped up.

Darth Stinger shook her head. Now, she was more determined than ever to stop him once and for all.

A short time later, VENOM caught up. They were now ready to execute their plans.

"Launch the drone, Max. Let's get 'em," Miles stated.

With the press of a button, Buzzard split into side pods for each of the Mayhem twins. Wings came out of the middle portion, and the drone-controlled jet took to the air.

Floyd was all too eager to transform Vampire from a touring bike to a jet. The windshield slid down to reveal a pair of lasers as the back pushed out and wings extended from the sides. Vanessa didn't fully transform Manta, but she activated the lasers concealed in her headlights. In addition, a compartment in the hood opened to reveal three missiles.

"I'm a sitting duck down here, I better take my chances in the air," Matt told himself out loud. "But first, let me do this," he added. Goliath-1's sides extended to form wings. The back wheels turned to face away from the rear of the vehicle. Finally, the front wheels tucked into the middle of the vehicle. Once the transformation finished, one of the slicker missiles fell from the left wing. As it touched the ground, it instantly formed an icy surface.

Vanessa screamed, but she kept her composure to complete Manta's jet transformation so she could fly over the icy patch. Darth Stinger, on the other hand, had no time to react and her motorcycle skidded out of control. Only some last-second use of the Force kept her from skidding into a supermarket's brick wall.

"You guys better convert down there. Tim, you keep racing," Matt stated.

"You've got two air vehicles up there. That's not exactly fair odds," Tim replied.

"I don't want you using your jet mode unless you have to."

In the air, the Buzzard Drone executed its instructions.

"Running destruct-o program: destroy Goliath jet," the drone's robotic voice announced.

"This is just like Africa all over again. I just hope I can hold out," Matt said as he noticed both Vampire and Buzzard pursuing him.

"We got you now, Trakker!" Miles called out through an open radio frequency.

_If this isn't an emergency, nothing is,_ Tim thought. Without any hesitation, he pulled the level activating defense mode.

"Let's hope I can fly this thing now." He said out loud.

Matt, upon seeing the airborne Oz-1, shook his head.

"Great. Don't you know it, he's another wild driver just like Dusty," he said.

* * *

At the Jedi order, everyone looked on in excitement to see Tim flying his race car in the air.

"I had no idea he could do that," Master Cal told Knight Rachel.

"I just hope he can land that thing safely. If not, they better have good medical staff on hand. It's at least 15-20 minutes away from here," the healer replied.

In her quarters, Ahsoka looked on in surprise to see her fiance taking Oz-1 airborne.

"The suspense is going to kill me. Maybe I better check this last magazine." she told herself. She then picked up the summer edition of _Beautiful Bride_ and started to page through it.

* * *

Back in the air, Tim plotted his next move, doing his best not to tip off Darth Stinger.

"Let's give that red motorcycle a warning shot," he said. He carefully let go of the steering wheel with his right hand and used his fingers to target the micro-lasers. Gripping the steering wheel with both hands again, he pressed the appropriate fire button.

"Wha?! Where'd he come from? Am I seeing double?" Floyd whined.

"Never mind him, Bird Man, get Trakker!" Miles ordered him.

"No way! I'm not going to have Vampire shot down up here." Floyd then retreated but circled around to see if he could support Vanessa instead.

"That's one down," Tim stated. However, the Buzzard Drone would be a greater challenge. Tim looked on as Matt narrowly avoided fire from Buzzard's slicer cannon.

"Let's see if drones are susceptible to the Force."

The Buzzard Drone opened its hatch to re-scan the sky.

"Target sighted. Locking in on target. Firing slicer cannon," it stated as it pressed the fire button.

"Gotcha, Trakker," Miles stated as he looked up towards the sky.

Tim concentrated with the Force. As the laser fire shot out from the slicer cannon, he slowly manipulated it so that it fell short of Matt in Goliath.

"Unable to determine error," the Drone said.

On the ground, the lack of a direct hit shocked and irritated Miles.

"What! What happened up there?" he asked in disbelief.

"Maybe your drone is as bad a shot as the rest of you, Miles," Matt replied teasingly.

"I'll get you soon enough, Trakker!"

On the ground, Vanessa did her best to intimidate the MASK racers.

"Ali, Boris, and Clutch. You may have beaten me before, but that changes today."

"Take your best shot, my lovely," Boris replied.

"Typical male pig."

Clutch, anticipating a showdown, converted Wildcat to attack mode. The upper half lifted up into a raised assault platform. His own cannons appeared from out of the headlights.

"You really think you can take on all three of us?" Clutch asked.

"I've faced tougher odds, Hawks"

"Bring it, Warfield," Clutch said as he shot a metallic disk from Wildcat's lower grille.

"As if!" Vanessa scoffed. "Whip, on!" The long whip-like projection from Vanessa's mask attempted to deflect the disk safely away from Manta. Instead, Vanessa groaned at the unexpected explosion.

"VENOM souped up their vehicles in Chicago. I thought I'd return the favor," Clutch stated.

"Time for me to create my own explosive situation."

Boris quickly transformed Bulldog into a half-track vehicle. The cabin flipped 90 degrees to provide armor plating. Lasers and a saw blade popped out of the front. The back panel opened to reveal a transonium disrupter, and the exhaust stacks lowered. The last of which could create a blizzard-like condition or create an icy patch if shot directly onto the ground.

Boris used the stacks to create a blizzard just as Vanessa fired her missiles. Although she saw a puff of smoke, the MASK vehicles were nowhere to be seen.

"I'll get you yet!" Vanessa yelled. "Why didn't you help me, bird brain?"

"Remember the Mesa Verde race? You wouldn't cover me when they grounded Vampire," Floyd reminded her.

"You're as useless as bird droppings, Floyd."

"And stop calling me Floyd!"

Floyd, instead trailed Jacques. "I'll get him back for what he did in Australia," he told himself.

* * *

Back at the abandoned KADP car plant, Nash Gorey transformed Outlaw into a mobile computer center. He hopped out of the cab and gleefully ran up to one of the computer terminals. After pressing a few buttons, he spoke to Bruno."

"This is the building where I'm picking something, Mad Dog. Rip that wall down so I can get a better readout."

Bruno, despite being unhappy about working with the usually-whiny Gorey, was eager to get his part of the mission over with. He once again activated Stinger's claw so he could punch and rip a hole in the wall. Amazingly, the crumbling building showed no signs of imminent collapse.

Once Bruno moved Stinger away from the hole, Gorey pressed a couple of more buttons. Outlaw's dual laser/scanner rotated to the opening. Gorey looked as the display eagerly. If there really was a solid gold vehicle buried underneath the floor, his scanners would easily pick it up.

"Well, is it there?" Bruno asked impatiently.

"Shhh. I'm not done yet," Gorey replied. After a minute or two, he spoke again. "There's something there alright. It doesn't seem like it's solid gold, but it's definitely got gold in it."

Bruno drove Stinger through the hole, but was once again stopped by piles of debris. As he got out of his vehicle, he groaned as he looked down at the floor.

"Hey what is this crap?" he asked.

"That's exactly what it is, Mad Dog. The computer says it's got the right nitrogen content for it."

"Yuck!" Bruno screamed. He couldn't leap into Stinger fast enough. He transformed into attack mode and used his laser pods on low intensity to shoot at the floor.

"I'm not stepping in that stuff, not after I just got these new boots."

Gorey was about to chide Bruno for his behavior, but he used it to his advantage.

"Shoot closer to your right, but not too much. Whatever we're looking for is below that point. I'll tell you when to use the claw," he said.

* * *

Floyd did his best to pursue Jacques from a distance. He hadn't forgotten about the slick liquid the MASK agent shot at him in the Challenge of the Masters. If skidding out of control wasn't bad enough, having kangaroos endlessly splashing him was worse.

As Vampire flew close enough to trigger Volcano's sensors, Jacques converted his van. It split in half and a raised platform rose up. Capable of rotating a full 360 degrees, he could attack air or ground-based vehicles. As he saw Floyd swoop down, he decided to react.

"It's time for me to me disappear. Mirage, on," Jacques called out. Volcano slowly faded from view until it disappeared from sight.

"Hey, where'd he go?" Floyd asked.

"He's right in front of you!" Darth Stinger interjected.

"No he's not, he used his mask. Last time someone shot at him when he was invisible, we lost a priceless Icelandic treasure."

Darth stinger sighed loudly. She found herself questing the sanity, and intelligence, of the VENOM agents.

A short distance away, Miles realized Matt was too far ahead at the moment. Seeing a frustrated Darth Stinger, he made alternate plans.

"Stinger, get ready. I'll stop that Jedi for you. Then you can get him," he said.

Darth Stinger stopped her motorcycle and turned around. _About time, _she thought.

"Flexor, on!" Miles called out. His mask produced a large, impenetrable bubble that slowly floated in front of Tim, blocking his path.

Tim, spotting the bubble, said, "I'm not Walker Lawrence, so I'll pop that bubble."

"I wouldn't try it if I were you," Matt replied. "It's impenetrable and it will reflect your fire back at you."

Tim, reassessing his situation, adjusted his strategy.

"No time to go up and over. I'll just duck under." He then directed Oz-1 down toward the ground while following the under body of the bubble.

As he flew down toward the ground, Darth Stinger acted. She pressed a button to reveal the laser cannon concealed in her motorcycle. All she had to do was press the fire button when he flew closer to her.

As Tim prepared to finish his descent, he quickly spotted Darth Stinger. He gasped upon realizing he had been set up for a potential ambush.

"Say your prayers, Jedi," Darth Stinger hissed. "You're going down for the last time."

Tim looked behind him; and, he noticed Buzzard's drone closing in behind him. He closed his eyes and immersed himself in the Force. He wasn't sure how he was going to get out of this predicament, but he decided to trust the Force, regardless of the outcome.

Boris, witnessing and hearing what transpired, chose to intervene.

"Not if you're too busy seeing red," he said. He stuck his head out of Bulldog's window and called out "Comrade, fire."

A number of red spots and stars started to flash in front of Darth Stinger. As she was momentarily disoriented, she pressed the fire button a split-second prematurely before pressing it again. The first shot caught the undercarriage of Oz-1.

Tim looked at the display as it began to chime. Thankfully, the damage was minimal and he began to fly back up alongside the flexible bubble and away from Darth Stinger.

Meanwhile, Darth Stinger's second shot missed Oz-1 and hit the drone jet.

"Impossible to fly!" the drone repeated until it hit the ground and crashed in a shower of sparks.

Miles, seeing what just happened, lost his temper.

"You dunderhead! How could you let that Russian bumpkin stop you? I set you up perfectly and you shot my drone down instead?"

"Save it," Darth Stinger hissed. "It's incompetents like you that make me glad I prefer working alone."

"This will be the last time you work when I get done with you. Let's get her Maxie."

Darth Stinger quickly turned her motorcycle around and accelerated as fast as she could. However, she was no match for Buzzard's side pods.

"Fire melter cannons!" Miles called out. By this point, he felt the alliance with Darth Stinger had ended. Now, he was set to target her after she shot down the Buzzard drone.

Darth Stinger didn't need to be Force-sensitive to sense the hot liquefied lead bearing down on her. She knew if it hit the gas tank, she'd be the one to die.

In his own pod, Max Mayhem noticed a button he never activated before. He eagerly pressed it.

"Fire canon cannons," he called out.

"We don't have those, Maximus. That phony guy kept those for himself," Miles reminded him.

"I get so carried away," Max groaned.

"Don't worry, brother. I'll show you how to stop her. Flexor, on!"

Darth Stinger screamed as another large bubble appeared directly in front of her. Her motorcycle flipped out of control upon impact.

"Deep freeze, on" Max called out. A blast of cold energy shot out of his mask and it hit the motorcycle, rendering it inoperable.

Darth Stinger stood up and looked at the racing pods that stopped in front of her. Both Miles and Max opened their pods to look at her.

"So, what do you have to say for yourself now, Stinger?" Miles asked as he snickered evilly. Between himself and his twin brother, he figured he had the upper hand.

Darth Stinger, however, kept her composure. "I told you not to mess with me," she calmly replied.

She then lifted her hands, astonishing the Mayhem brothers as they floated out of their pods. As they fell to the ground, she spread her fingers and thrust her hands forward. Force lightning shot out of her fingertips toward her now-enemies. Both groaned and cried out in pain until the painful blasts ended.

Satisfied that she had incapacitated them sufficiently, she turned and walked away. "Now, I have to find a way out of this urban prairie and get back to my compound," she muttered.

As the Mayhem brothers slowly regained sensation in their bodies, they both groaned as they tried to stand up.

"That certainly was unexpected," Miles stated.

"I was just as shocked as you were, brother," Max replied.

Miles gave one last groan at his brother's comment.

* * *

Back at the Jedi Order, the recent events shocked those watching the camera feed. Nearly everyone breathed a sigh of relief to know Tim had narrowly cheated death and that the worst of it was that his race car would still convert back and forth between jet mode, albeit with rougher takeoffs and landings due to the damaged thruster.

Ahsoka, nearly tore her magazine in half when she feared the worst. As she breathed another sigh of relief, she noticed her hands shaking. She got herself a glass of water and she felt relieved to see the race had now settled down. She then looked at the next article in her magazine.

_How can she even wear that? It looks like it's going to fall off if she sneezes,_ Ahsoka thought. She shook her head and turned the page. Perhaps the next article might offer a dress that interested her.

* * *

Inside the KADP car plant, Bruno continued to rip through the floor. As much as he disliked working with Nash Gorey, he felt it might be worth it if there really was something made out of gold waiting to be found.

Gorey continued to monitor progress at one of Outlaw's computer terminals. As he continued his scans, he made note of something.

"Careful, Bruno, you're getting closer. Make sure you don't damage whatever it is. We don't want Mr. Mayhem mad at us, do we?"

"Go kiss a tire iron!" Bruno muttered in disgust.

"What did you just say?"

"Umm, I said I'd stop firin'," Bruno said.

"That's what I thought you said. I need to get some readings from the opposite side. If you reach it before I get there, just wait for me."

Bruno gave an indifferent nod as Gorey pulled away.

"I'll be glad when this is over," Bruno told himself. He then used Stinger's claw to dig deeper. Suddenly, he heard a loud clinking noise.

Bruno stepped out, walked to the edge of the hole, and peeked down inside it. The pale yellow color suggested Gorey was right after all: something golden was down there.

"He better hurry up. I want to get this thing out of here. At least Lester gets to stay outside away from the toothpick," he thought out loud.

Outside, Gorey pulled onto Perimeter Boulevard so that he could drive to the opposite end of the building. The complex contained several buildings separated by roads or alleys. Gorey drove the length of the block and noticed the point where he needed to turn. What he didn't notice, however, was an old, dilapidated catwalk overhead. With Outlaw still open in its converted mode, the raised portion of the rear would clip part of the catwalk.

"Oh no!" Gorey called out. He frantically pushed the button to return outlaw to its normal form as a tanker truck, but it wasn't in time. The loud noise meant one thing; he scraped the bottom of the catwalk.

"Mr. Mayhem is gonna kill me for that. But maybe if we get that vehicle, he can just deduct it from my share," Gorey said. Knowing he was on part of the race course, he was eager to turn off onto the side street and get Outlaw out of sight.

A short distance away, Tim noticed Outlaw as it clipped the catwalk.

_That doesn't look right. I've never seen a truck like that before,_ he thought. He then activated his commlink.

"Ashley, there's some sort of suspicious looking truck hanging around the old KAPD complex. You might want to check with Alex to see if it's something to be concerned about," he said.

"Right away, Master."

As Tim ended his transmission, he sensed trouble. Part of the catwalk was starting to crumble. Tim frantically slammed on his brakes but stopped too soon. He found himself underneath the falling rubble. A small chunk of brick hit his helmet and damaged the camera just as he screamed and desperately put his hands in the air.

Despite his efforts, an avalanche of bricks landed on top of Oz-1.

Everyone in the Jedi order gasped in horror upon hearing Tim's scream and seeing the live feed abruptly terminate.

In her own quarters, Ahsoka gave a blood-curdling scream and frantically ran out into the hall. She had to get to the race site now. She could only hope she wouldn't be widowed before she was married.


	3. The Border Brawl, Part Two

"Clutch, we're receiving a report of possible VENOM activity near an abandoned auto plant. It appears you're about to drive by, can you check it out?" Alex asked through a secured MASK frequency.

"I'm on my way," Clutch replied. As he looked ahead, he noticed the avalanche and what looked like a vehicle trapped underneath.

"Someone's in trouble! I better help them, even if it means Boris extends his lead. So much for bragging rights," he said as he stopped Wildcat next to the pile of rocks.

"Let's reinforce that thing before it hurts someone else."

After converting Wildcat, clutch aimed the elevated cab up towards the catwalk.

"Concrete cannons, fire!"

A stream of instantly-drying concrete hit what was left of the catwalk. For now, that would stabilize the structure until permanent repairs could be made.

Inside the rubble, Tim took a deep breath. Aside from the debris that damaged his helmet camera, he had just enough time to raise a Force barrier that saved his life. However, he wanted to be sure it was safe to take the next step. Satisfied there would be no more rubble falling from overhead, he thrust his arms forward to disperse the debris that threatened to fill the inside of Oz-1. He then undid his safety harness and used a Force jump to exist the cockpit. He was surprised to see a MASK vehicle seemingly waiting for him.

"Are you OK?" Clutch asked.

"I'm fine. If I was a cat, though, I'd think I've lost the second of my nine lives," Tim replied.

"You still look a little shaky, but that's expected."

"You can say that again," Tim answered as he removed his helmet. Upon noticing the cracked camera lens, he added, "I guess this means the live show is over."

"Let's get you out of that rubble and see if you can still drive that thing. I can only hope it's not too damaged, especially since I'm the one that has to fix it."

Clutch then walked over to the side where debris stacked up against Oz-1 and blocked the roadway.

"Ditcher, on," he said. The blue crosshatches that doubled as his mask's eye holes glowed before shooting powerful blue beams that blasted the rubble off to the side.

"Actually, I can do that easier," Tim stated. He stood on the other side and raised his hands. Clutch looked on in amazement as the debris floated off the ground and onto the small patch of grass on the other side of the road. There, the debris fell harmless back to the ground.

"How'd you do that? You didn't steal Bruce's lifter mask, did you?" Clutch asked with a hint of teasing.

"I'm a Jedi. We can do stuff like that. That's how I kept from being crushed like a beetle," Tim replied. He then used the Force to move Oz-1 away form what was left of the rubble.

Clutch made a quick inspection of the exterior. "Aside from all the dents, it looks like you can still drive it. Can you check the diagnostic display for me?"

Tim got back inside Oz-1 and started the ignition. With instructions on how to access the diagnostics, the engine and other vital components were undamaged, apart from the previously-damaged thruster.

"At least this thing is brick-resistant. Let's finish the race."

"What about that truck I saw?"

"Oh yeah, what did it look like?"

"Well, it looked like it had a raised box or crate on the back, but it lowered."

Clutch rubbed his chin before realizing what it was. "That's Outlaw! That can only mean Goon Gorey is prowling around and up to no good. We better check it out."

"We?" Tim asked suspiciously as he put his helmet back on.

"Well, I need backup, and with nobody else around, and the fact you're technically driving a MASK vehicle, you're it."

"Fair enough."

Tim's commlink began to chirp.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Thank goodness you're okay," Knight Ashley stated on the other end. "Everyone thought you were a goner – especially after the camera stopped broadcasting."

"Not yet. Cancel my obituary and let someone know two of us are going to check out the suspicious activity here."

"Right away, Master."

Clutch and Tim then slowly followed Gorey's last known location in an attempt to find the VENOM agent.

* * *

Elsewhere, Ahsoka continued to drive as fast as her three-wheeled all-terrain vehicle would let her. After her initial scream, she convinced an assistant from the Committee of Assignments to lend her a vehicle that would get her to the race site as quickly as possible. Plugging her fiance's last known position into the mobile version of chartjourney·invalid produced directions.

As Ahsoka approached the near end of the abandoned plant, she stopped and turned off to the side. Something odd caught her attention. With her enhanced vision, she reasoned she could prepare for trouble now before her potential adversary discovered her.

Lester drove Iguana to where he thought another vehicle had parked. Having strict orders to keep prying eyes away from Bruno and Gorey, he was surprised to see the driver dismount and walk towards him. He sped up closer and stopped. He blinked his eyes and looked out of his mask again. If he wasn't hallucinating, this looked like the same person he nearly killed nearly a year ago. As Ahsoka walked closer, her unusual appearance was a dead giveaway.

"Hey, Tano, remember me?" he asked Ahsoka.

Ahsoka's head-tails twitched and curled in horror. She immediately recognized Lester and his ATV. Still, she was determined to remain calm and not let Lester get the upper hand again.

"I never forget a loser," she replied calmly.

"No one calls Lester Sludge a loser!"

Ahsoka shrugged her shoulders. "That's funny, I just did," she replied with a small, teasing smile.

An angry Lester converted Iguana to attack mode. The rear portion of his seat turned to provide a rear shield. Additionally, two long cannons extended from the front. Ahsoka's eyes widened as Iguana's shredder blade extended and started to spin.

"When I'm through with you, I'll serve the leftovers up as orange juice," Lester stated before laughing hysterically. He then slammed on Iguana's accelerator.

Ahsoka, doing her best to remain calm, used a Force jump to leap over Iguana and land behind it. Lester appeared surprised, but he remained unfazed as he stopped Iguana.

"Jump for joy all you want, Tano, but I can cut you down from behind," he called out. To prove his point, he activated Iguana's rear chainsaw blade.

As Lester shifted Iguana into reverse and sped up again, Ahsoka did her best to carefully time her next jump. As she leaped, she quickly unhooked her lightsaber and shoto to ignite them together. With one quick strike, she cut Iguana's front shredder blade off the vehicle.

Lester lost his composure upon feeling and seeing the damage.

"You trashed my shredder blade!" he screamed. He then fired Iguana's sludge cannons, but Ahsoka swiftly dived away from the slow-moving streams of muddy gunk.

"Mudslinger, on!" Lester called out. Despite peppering the air with shots of mud, Ahsoka crouched, ducked, and jumped away from all of them. As she jumped behind Iguana, her shoto cleanly sliced off the rear saw blade.

Lester growled in disgust once again.

"Leave now, before I dismantle this awful contraption of yours," Ahsoka stated emphatically as she gritted her teeth.

Lester looked at Ahsoka. She continued to hold her lightsaber and shoto with the blades crossed. Ready to concede defeat and prevent further damage to Iguana, he shook his head and sped off.

"I'm getting out of here. Miles couldn't pay me enough to stick around with her on the loose. I'll go back to downtown and try to find that cafe I noticed earlier. Any place named _Bad Boys Go to Brussels_ sounds like my kind of dive," he said.

Ahsoka extinguished her lightsaber and shoto and reattached them to her belt.

"Now that I got my workout for the day, I need to find my fiance." Ahsoka said as she remounted her own ATV and turned back onto the boulevard.

* * *

Nash Gorey pulled Outlaw around a corner and stopped. If he had been spotted, he didn't want to tip off anyone to Bruno's whereabouts and current task. He gulped when he saw what looked like a couple of MASK vehicles closing in on his location.

Clutch stopped Wildcat about 30 feet [~9 m] away. He was surprised to see Tim get out of Oz-1 and stand in front of it.

Gorey was just as surprised. However, he felt confident he could take care of the situation on his own. Spotting some debris alongside of Outlaw, he was further convinced he didn't need any help.

Gorey stepped out of outlaw's open cab and looked at his adversaries.

"What are you up to now, Gorey?" Clutch asked.

"Wouldn't you like to know, Hawks. I see you have a new friend. Let's see how strong he is. Powerhouse, on."

Once again, a green glow surrounded Gorey's body as he picked up the remains of a broken beam and hurled it at Tim. Clutch looked on in shock. He had no time to react, but he wasn't sure how his colleague would handle the large, heavy object hurled his way.

To Clutch's surprise, Tim calmly held his hands in front of him and the beam hovered in mid-air.

"Sorry, elephant face. I'm not here for fun and games. Here, have it back," Tim replied. As he thrust his hands forward, the beam flew back towards Gorey.

"If that's a new MASK agent, he's got some crazy powers," Gorey whined. He then swung and punched the beam. Thanks to his mask-induced superhuman strength, the beam crumpled and hit the ground. As he looked up, he saw two of Wildcat's disks flying towards him.

"Those aren't my grandma's pie tins. I'm getting out of here!"

After the explosive disks narrowly missed both him and Outlaw, Gorey quickly hopped back into his tanker and gunned the engine. He couldn't seem to pull away fast enough.

"Does he always take off like that?" Tim asked.

"Without the mask, he's the stereotypical 90-pound [41 kg] weakling. He can't leave fast enough when someone stands up to him," Clutch replied.

"That's fair enough, but we've got a race to finish. And, we **still** don't know what they were doing here."

"Let's call this in and let someone else handle it."

* * *

Elsewhere, Darth Stinger walked along Perimeter Boulevard, hoping to find alternate transportation. Suddenly, she spotted an orange GTO parked off to the side.

"This will work," she told herself.

As she got in and sped away, she looked at the instrumentation panel. Not knowing it was Bruno's vehicle, Stinger, she still correctly deduced it was either a MASK or a VENOM vehicle.

_I need to figure this thing out,_ she thought.

Back at the plant, Bruno heard the commotion and saw Stinger being driven off. Unfortunately, it turned the corner quickly, precluding the use of his magna-beam.

"Miles isn't going to like this," he said.

"I'm not going to like what?" Miles asked through their private inter-mask frequency.

"Someone stole Stinger."

"You brainless buffoon! How could you be so careless?"

"It's not my fault, boss man. Lester and Gorey took off and left me alone," Bruno explained.

"Never mind that. Did you find what I'm looking for."

"That's the thing, I was waiting for Gorey to confirm it."

"Another great plot of mine foiled by incompetent minions. I'll deal with you later. I gotta catch up and take care of MASK," Miles replied with noticeable disgust in his voice.

* * *

After Clutch reported the confrontation with Gorey, Tim turned his head.

"What's a Jedi ATV doing here?"

"It's not Iguana, is it?" Clutch asked suspiciously.

"No, it's not a lizard. It's one of mine. I can see our logo."

Both were surprised to see Ahsoka stop and dismount from the ATV.

"Ahsoka, what are you doing here?" Tim asked.

"Excuse me? I thought you were crushed in that rock slide and came out to check on you. Why else would I come here?" she answered emphatically.

"I'm fine. But why didn't you contact me via commlink to see if I was alright?"

Ahsoka's head-tail stripes darkened in embarrassment. "I didn't think about that. I assumed the worst, and I wanted to get down here as fast I could," she confessed.

"Well, what's done is done. I guess now that you're here, you can join Clutch and I as we finish the race."

Ahsoka nodded. "So, who's winning?"

"I don't know. I just know Boris is probably going to beat me, barring a miracle. So let's finish and hope for the best," Clutch replied.

The trio then sped up and resumed their drive east on Perimeter Boulevard.

* * *

Darth Stinger continued to drive along Perimeter Boulevard. Despite her best efforts, she still couldn't figure out how to convert the vehicle, Stinger, to attack mode. In her unsuccessful efforts, she honked the horn, activated the claw, and blasted _Hooked on Synthpop_ through the radio. Frustrated, yet determined, she remained resolved to finish this race. One good thing, though, she was now able to monitor radio transmissions between VENOM agents.

"MASK reports that Darth Stinger stole Stinger," she heard Miles Mayhem announce.

"Someone named Stinger stole Stinger? That's crazy! Who comes up with this stuff?" Bruno replied.

"Never mind that, we gotta stop her before she uses our own vehicle against us."

Darth Stinger grinned to herself. If she could somehow figure how to convert Stinger, she just might exact her revenge on the same group that antagonized her most of the day.

As she neared a billboard, she was so engrossed in her scheming that she overlooked Goliath-2 waiting for her.

"She's coming your way, Chief," Dusty Hayes called out.

"First, let's slow her down. Totem, on," Nevada stated. A number of miniature totem poles shot out of his mask and covered the roadway.

Nevada quickly got back into his vehicle with Darth Stinger reaching his location. As she drove over the totem poles, she lost traction and begun to spin out.

"What the...?" she asked as she tried to steer out of the skid.

In the meantime, Dusty opened up the Billboard Blast and fired one of his rockets. As it hit the ground, it released a sticky, tar-like substance that engulfed Stinger and held it in place. The vehicle, and its similarly-named driver, were now immobilized.

"Good job, Dusty. Now **this** is the way to play Cowboys and Indians. Let's go to Hog Island and make sure the others finish," Nevada said.

"Sure thing, partner," Dusty replied. With the press of another button, the converted portion of the billboard lifted away form the pole and took flight.

Back on the ground, Darth Stinger gingerly got out of Stinger, taking care to avoid the sticky goo, lest she be ensnared herself.

_If nothing else, I'm closer to a bus stop. I just want to get back to my compound and forget today even happened, _she thought.

* * *

Clutch, Tim, and Ahsoka approached the eastern end of Perimeter Boulevard. If they continued straight ahead, they've cross the bridge leading to hog island. Unknown to them, the Mayhem brothers resumed racing and closed the gap between both groups.

"What **is** that thing?" Max asked as his display zoomed in on Ahsoka's rear head-tail and montrals.

"Beats me, but maybe we can catch it and find out," Miles replied. Knowing the melter cannons would tip off their position, he opted to stop Ahsoka with an unexpected attack.

"Flexor, on," he called out. Once again, a large bubble floated towards Ahsoka.

Ahsoka had no time to react to the large bubble that floated in front of her. As her ATV hit it, she yelped as her neck snapped back. The impact of hitting the bubble threw her off vehicle and onto the narrow patch of grass alongside the road.

"Ahsoka!" Tim called out upon hearing her yelp and sensing something was amiss. He slammed on Oz-1's brakes and the vehicle turned 180 degrees. "It looks like trouble," he added.

"Leave it up to Mayhem to cause trouble yet again," Clutch replied.

"Fire lightning rod," Tim called out. However, his helmet's weapon refused to fire, even when he manually pushed the button. "It looks like my weapon got knocked out in the rock slide," he told Clutch.

"I'll slow 'em down for you." Sticking his head out of the window, Clutch called "Ditcher, on," to put a large hole in the middle of the roadway. Unfortunately, the Mayhem brothers narrowly swerved off on either side of the hole and continued to close down on Ahsoka.

"You can't stop us now, Hawks. We'll get whatever that is," Miles stated. To everyone's surprise, both Mayhems fired their melter cannons towards Ahsoka.

Ahsoka sensed trouble. As she turned around, she saw the hot lead bearing down on her. However, another odd sensation pulsated through her montrals. Two of Wildcat's disks intercepted the streams of liquid and exploded on contact.

"Exploding street covers? Where'd those come from?" Ahsoka asked herself as she covered her head to muffle the sound of the explosions.

Clutch was ready to take action again. After activating attack mode, he said, "Let's protect her before they get too close. Concrete cannons, fire." He then created a small wall to separate Ahsoka from the Mayhems.

Tim sped up and stated, "Make a ramp, I'm going to need the boost to get airborne."

After Clutch added more of Wildcat's instant-drying concrete to the wall, Tim used it as a ramp while he converted Oz-1 to attack mode. Although the bottom of the vehicle fishtailed a bit due to the inoperable rear thruster, he flew past the separate pods of Buzzard and circled back around.

As the Mayhems frantically slammed on their brakes to avoid the makeshift wall, Tim circled around from behind and shot his micro-lasers.

"Let's get out of here!" Max whined as he revved his pod and took off.

"You quitter! And you wonder why mom liked me more!" Miles retorted. However, another near miss was too close for comfort.

"Wait for me, this guy's worse than a MASK agent," Miles called out as he sped off in the opposite direction.

With VENOM out of the way, Tim landed Oz-1 alongside Ahsoka. He quickly ran up to her.

"Are you alright?" he asked her.

Ahsoka groaned. I think I'm OK, but my neck hurts from hitting that bubble thing."

"We're almost at the finish line. If you can still drive, we can check in at the medical station. If not, I'll scan you myself and see what we can do for you."

Ahsoka slowly got up and remounted her vehicle. "I think I can do it," she said.

* * *

Matt, Jacques, Boris, Ali, and Vanessa made it across the bridge to Hog Island. With three laps around the island to determine the winner, anything could happen. Vanessa was determined to defeat MASK a second time, especially after Jacques and Ali combined to take Floyd out of the race for good.

With lap and a half complete, though, Vanessa closed in and started firing rockets at the MASK agents.

"What are we going to do? Vanessa is closing in and won't give up," Ali asked.

"I say we launch operation shadow. Everybody close in," Matt replied.

As the MASK vehicles tightened their formation, Jacques and Boris converted Volcano and Bulldog respectively.

"Shroud, on," Matt said. His mask produced a stream of fog that slowly engulfed the MASK vehicles.

Boris then fired his transonium disruptor towards Vanessa.

Behind the pack, Vanessa looked on in confusion.

"What are they doing? They can't stop me now, I'm too close," she told herself. As she entered the fog, her instrumentation went haywire.

"I can't see anything in here!" she groaned.

Jacques was ready to make the final move. He aimed toward the road and fired a stream of hot lava.

Vanessa felt aloud thump as Manta went airborne unexpectedly. As the fog lifted, her eyes widened and she screamed as Manta splashed into one of lagoons within the island.

"I'll get you next time!" she yelled. Realizing, she needed to get Manta out of the water before it sank too low, she took swift action. Spotting a large utility pole, she said, "Whip, on." As her whip wrapped around the pole, she converted Manta to attack mode and used her whip to pull Manta out of the water and give her a boost. Conceding defeat, she flew away.

A short time later, the race results were official. Jacques narrowly finished ahead of Ali to win the border Brawl. Matt took third followed by Boris, Clutch, and Tim. Ahsoka stopped short of the finish line because she wasn't in the race and she needed to find the medical station.

* * *

The Border City Mayor, Douglas Michaels, presented medals to Jacques, Ali, and Matt for their top-three finishes. Jacques also received special praise from Frances Edison, the Violet City mayor, for being the first francophone to win the Border Brawl.

Returning with a collar around her neck, Ahsoka rejoined her fiance and they shared congratulatory applause along with Alex and Duane.

"You were right, VENOM had nearly uncovered a vehicle with enough gold in it to be considered priceless. Thank goodness our Jedi colleagues were able to help us remove it," Duane told Alex and Tim.

"What are they going to do with it?" Alex asked.

"There is an automotive museum a short distance away. If they can figure out how to properly restore it and display it securely, they're very interested in adding it to their collection," Tim replied.

"You've been a big help in this mission. I wish there was more we could do to thank you."

"Why don't you return with us for a celebratory dinner."

"Dining hall food isn't exactly a thank-you," Ahsoka stated.

"That's why I was planning something catered."

"Oh," Ahsoka replied as her head-tail stripes darkened in embarrassment.

"I beg your pardon, but keep in mind I can't eat beef," Ali stated.

"Indeed. I could make sure to order something with chicken or plain to accommodate that," Tim replied.

Ali nodded.

* * *

At the Jedi dining hall, everyone finished their dinner.

"Tim, thanks for your hospitality and your assistance," Matt said.

"Likewise, I'm sure. I'm just glad our enemies all went home empty handed. However, I could have done without the close calls."

"It comes with the territory. I almost thought I was a goner in my race in Africa."

At another table, Boris and Clutch settled their bet.

"Well, Boris, you finished ahead of me fair and square this time. I guess I'll be taking you to that sports bar the first chance we get after we return to headquarters."

"I can hardly wait. But you did good, too, Clutchsky. Because you stop for Tim when he's in trouble, I'll still give you some of my next batch of borscht."

"Really? Thanks for being a good sport about it. Just don't burn it like last time."

Ahsoka stood up and cleared her throat. Everyone's conversation ended as they made eye contact with her. She adjusted her cervical collar before she spoke.

"Before you have to leave, I wanted to tell you something. On the way back, my fiance and I talked things over. Give that our wedding party is going to be on the smaller side, I suggested that we invite you to our ceremony. If you're interested, it will be October 12th at noon at Our Lady of the Assumption. We'd like to see as many of you as possible."

"We'll see what we can do," Matt promised.

* * *

After everyone left, Tim and Ahsoka enjoyed some quiet time together.

"Is it bad?" he asked her.

"Rachel's assistant said it was very mild whiplash. She told me to come back tomorrow for treatment. I should feel better in a day or two," Ahsoka replied.

"That's good then. I'm glad you're OK."

"Me, too. I feared the worse when I thought you were about to be crushed."

"Had I been a split-second slower, that might have happened. But, I hope next time, you'll try calling me first."

"Where's the fun in that?" Ahsoka replied half-jokingly. "I got to show that weirdo what I can do when I'm ready for battle."

"Fair enough."

"Oh, Tim, please promise you won't ever call me 'dear.' Why would you **ever** call a Sith Witch that?"

"Only because she hates it when I do."

"Just don't call me that."

"No problem," he replied as he kissed one of her cheek markings. "And please don't stress out over finding a dress. I know you want to make a good impression, but don't go too overboard. I hope Cara can help you find one."

"She's been helpful so far. I don't know what I'd do without her," Ahsoka replied before sighing. Looking for a dress was a challenge, but she also disliked the fact her future in-laws didn't accept her as part of the family and actively disowned both her and their son.

"I know. I wish they accepted us, too. But, it's my parents' loss if they don't want to be part of our celebration."

Ahsoka nodded.

Her husband hugged her and kissed her one last time. "I better go. I'll see you tomorrow."

* * *

Back at her compound, Darth Stinger gnashed her teeth as she thought about her experiences at the race.

"I was so close to finishing you off. Next time, when I don't have idiots around me, I'll get you. And, when the time comes, I look forward to unleashing my secret weapon," she told herself.

* * *

**Public Service Announcement**

* * *

"Hey, T-Bob, this new race car is pretty cool, don't you think?" Scott asked, in reference to Oz-1.

"Maybe if they raced in Alaska," T-Bob replied.

"Very funny. I'm going to go get some cotton candy at the concession stand, you wait here."

As Scott walked away, T-Bob noticed an unusual person walking towards him.

"Scott, come back. There's a strange ... creature coming over here. Scott?" he called out.

Ahsoka looked curiously at T-Bob, saying, "That's funny, my fiance never told me they had R2 units on Earth." Turning towards T-Bob, she added, "Don't worry, Artooey, I just want you to help me."

"I'm not an artooey, I'm a T-Bob. Stay away, whatever you are," the robot protested.

"I've never seen an R2 unit that spoke Basic." Ahsoka then took T-Bob's hand and tried to stick it into an access panel. "Let's run a diagnostic," she stated.

T-Bob, not equipped for what Ahsoka intended, found himself electrocuted as his hand touched an electrical conduit. He fell to the ground with a puff of smoke.

"What did you do to him?" Scott called out to Ahsoka, nearly dropping his cotton candy.

"I wanted him to do a diagnostic, so I tried to plug him in," Ahsoka explained.

"You should never try to plug in objects that don't fit into an outlet. You could damage them – or even give yourself an electric shock."

Ahsoka nodded. "I guess you're right," she replied.

As Scott reset T-Bob's circuit breaker, the latter's eyes lit up again and he jumped back into a standing position.

"Oh, Scott, thank goodness you're here. I just had the most revolting experience," T-Bob stated.

Scott groaned. Turning to Ahsoka again, he asked her, "Maybe you can help me reprogram his humor circuits."

* * *

**Closing Commentary: **For my sequel to _Racing Into Knighthood_, I opted to focus largely on the action with Ahsoka's upcoming wedding as a minor subplot. Although Ahsoka hadn't planned on becoming part of the mission, I'd like to believe she needed – and perhaps enjoyed – the break from wedding planning.

As always, the names of locations and other landmarks and such have been spoofed. I think I even broke the 4th wall a couple of times. But with any mission involving MASK and VENOM, some degree of humor has to be expected.

From the MASK perspective, I wanted to have some sort of resolution to Boris' and Clutch's racing series rivalry. Boris may appear a bit out of character, but I'd like to believe that the more he settled into his position as a MASK agent and acclimated himself to American life, he wouldn't act or sound like the bumpkin he was portrayed as on the cartoon. Also, I thought it would be a nice touch to have him offer to give Clutch some of his borscht as a sign of sportsmanship. After all, had Clutch not had to stop to help Tim and deal with Gorey, the race could have been much closer than it was.

Finally, it's my tradition that no story involving MASK is complete without the public service announcement at the end.

END


End file.
